'This is a race where every technology can be used by the bad guys and good guys.'
India has its share of both large tech companies and large national laboratories, but why is it that these don't seem to be at the forefront of any innovation news headlines? asks Ajit Balakrishnan.
Hiring trends in India's white-collar job market dipped marginally by 1.4 per cent in March compared to the same month last year, driven by a decline in recruitment in the retail, oil & gas, and education sectors, a report said on Wednesday.
'Binary fission will happen -- startups will lead to more startups.'
Aadhaar architect Nandan Nilekani on Friday India is well-placed on the government and businesses fronts to leverage artificial intelligence (AI) in unique ways to solve challenges and tap into opportunities. Nilekani noted that over the last few years, the government has focussed on how to make transactions more efficient and effective, which has driven digitisation across the board. He added that as a byproduct of this, huge data now across systems has been generated and that the time is right to apply AI across the board to India's most challenging issues across areas like healthcare and education.
In 2025, India's tech job market is thriving, with tech professionals seeing a 9.5% salary increase and roles like AI/ML architects earning up to Rs 95 lakh annually.
Only Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani are ahead of her.
India's e-commerce market alone is projected to reach $200 billion by 2026, making it a prime industry for ambitious entrepreneurs, explains rediffGURU Harsh Bharwani.
'The protection of secrecy and anonymity gets lost with this linking.'
Nine Indian universities and institutions have secured a place among the world's top 50 in the QS subject-wise rankings, with the Indian School of Mines (ISM) Dhanbad claiming the highest position at 20th globally for Engineering-Mineral and Mining. Despite the success, some top institutions, including three IITs, two IIMs and JNU, have experienced a drop in their rankings. The QS World University Rankings by Subject, in its 15th edition, highlight India's growing higher education ecosystem in terms of both size and quality.
Selected candidates will receive an annual scholarship award for up to two years for any subject and any college or university across the world.
'Because the same stupid questions are repeated year after year when an exam should provoke the students to think and not ask repetitive questions.' 'So, what do coaching institutes do? They teach students to memorise these questions and answers without understanding the subject.'
Tuition classes: Saviours or demons, asks Ajit Balakrishnan.
Ask rediffGURU and PF and MF expert Janak Patel your mutual fund and personal finance-related questions.
'We don't have to compete with Maharashtra or Gujarat. We have to now start thinking about how we compete with the United States or China.'
If you are interested in working with OpenAI, feel free to email Sam Altman. In a free-wheeling fireside chat with university students on Thursday in Delhi, the CEO of OpenAI and his team seemed eager to welcome bright young IT practitioners of India into the OpenAI work space. Asked about the steep degree requirements for applying to tech giants such as Microsoft and Google, Altman said that his company was open to hiring undergraduates and even college drop-outs.
The stock of online classified major Info Edge (India) was up over 6 per cent on Friday on expectations of demand improvement for Indian IT companies. Strong revenue growth prospects for each of its online verticals - including recruitment, matrimony, real estate, education, and upside from its holdings in companies such as Zomato - had prompted Goldman Sachs to upgrade the stock. Info Edge's standalone revenue grew 10.6 per cent year on year (Y-o-Y) in Q2FY25, beating consensus. 99acres (+16.9 per cent Y-o-Y) and Jeevansathi (+33 per cent Y-o-Y) were drivers of growth while recruitment grew 8.5 per cent Y-o-Y.
Tech giant Microsoft on Wednesday launched a new programme Microsoft AI Innovate for nurturing and scaling start-ups that are leveraging Artificial Intelligence (AI). The 10-week initiative will support start-ups in India leveraging AI technologies, helping them scale operations, drive innovation, and build industry expertise. Both B2B and B2C start-ups from various industries, including financial services, healthcare, education, agriculture, space, manufacturing and logistics, retail, and e-commerce can participate in the quarterly cohorts of this programme.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday identified agriculture, education and health as three sectors where he believes technology can play a big role, and highlighted efforts of his government.
The growing decline of MTech applicants in Indian colleges is due to multiple factors, including outdated curricula, poor return on investment and lucrative non-engineering alternatives, say experts.
Three out of five test-takers believe that removing their Indian accents while speaking English will positively impact test scores.
Wouldn't it be better to reach 45 with a backup engine of passive income that helps you glide through these years instead of grinding, asks Ramalingam Kalirajan
'To access our satellite, you don't need any IQ test, you don't need to write an examination.' 'You can be a Class 1 student, an engineering student, a 60-year-old person, anybody can access our satellite.'
All the global transitions are working in India's favour, giving it the potential to become a force in today's uncertain world, but one of the country's biggest challenges is inclusive growth, Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran said on Monday. In his address at the JRD Tata Oration, the head of the Tata group also asserted that Artificial Intelligence (AI) is here to stay and it will be beneficial if India prepares for it. Post the cold war era of relative stability and prosperity, the world appears to have given way to unpredictable conflicts and economic uncertainty, he said, adding that the pandemic resulted in supply chain shocks of gigantic proportion.
More than 10 million older adults aged 60 or over in India may have dementia, comparable to the prevalence rates for countries such as the US and the UK, according to a first-of-its-kind study.
'Listen to the voice in your head and keep your inner sanctum safe.'
Divya Nair/Rediff.com speaks to students and experts to find out whether it is better to study management in India or try for an international MBA.
Tech giant Microsoft regained the top spot in the list of best employers to work for in India in 2024, followed by Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and Amazon, according to a Randstad Employer Brand Research report released on Wednesday. Microsoft had topped the list in 2022, but slipped to fifth in 2023. The 2024 list is based on responses from 3,507 people.
The Indian insurance industry is set to focus on customer-centric technological adoption and expansion into rural areas to drive growth in 2025.
Given the prevailing employment market, uncertainty in the United States and the exorbitant expenses associated with studying abroad, it would be prudent for your son to acquire professional experience in India initially, advises rediffGURU Pananjay Tiwari.
Why has a Reddit user's post -- where the user warns that 'even an IIM tag won't save you' -- created a storm online?
Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted that his "vocal for local" campaign is bearing fruit as Indian products are going global and making their presence felt across the world. He said that India was becoming the land of infinite innovations, finding affordable solutions and offering them to the world. The prime minister also highlighted the country's rising defense products, electronics, automobile sector, and the success of superfoods, Ayush products, and yoga. He said India should be presented to the world as it is, without any bias. Modi said that the country was now emerging as a manufacturing hub and a "factory of the world." He added that India was creating solutions that were affordable, accessible, and adaptable, and offering them to the world without gatekeeping.
As part of the three-year programme, Microsoft will support select institutions with infrastructure, curriculum and content, access to cloud and Artificial Intelligence (AI) services as well as developer support, the company said in a statement.
The catch is the need for a supportive framework in place that allows free and fair use of such technology.
'This is the Bengal story, where businesses are nurtured, dreams are realised, and legacies are built.'
Trump also said that he has also used the H-1B visa programme.
The government may not be able to put in place the Digital India Act, which aims to replace over 23 years old IT Act 2000, before the next general election, as there is not much time left for extensive consultation, Minister of State for Electronics and IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar said on Wednesday. While speaking at the Global Technology Summit 2023, the minister, however, said the rules for the Digital Personal Data Protection Act will be out later this month for consultation and are expected to be notified by the end of December or early January. Chandrasekhar said the existing IT Act doesn't even have the word internet, and there is a consensus that it can be safely superseded and replaced.
DigiLocker, a government initiative for storing documents and verifying credentials online, is gradually replacing the need for paper.
'India has a skill shortage of 56%.' 'This is a very interesting paradox -- the unemployment rate is 6% to 7%, and at the same time 20% of those qualified are unemployed.'
Nearly 45 per cent of this value is likely to be delivered by 3 sectors - consumer goods and retail, agriculture and banking and insurance, the Nasscom report said.
